Charged £14.50 for delivery, no tracking, and forced to collect from depot.
I ordered flowers for a specific date, but the delivery experience was incredibly poor. I received absolutely no tracking information until I chased the retailer up. Royal Mail Tracked 24 normally sends automatic updates, so the total absence of notifications indicates the retailer failed to input my contact details when booking the label.
Because I couldn't monitor the parcel, I had no idea what was happening. No delivery attempt was made at my property, and the flowers were taken straight to the depot. Since they were perishable items needed for that specific day, I had to drive to the sorting office to collect them myself.
When I raised this, the retailer was highly defensive and argumentative. They tried to blame Royal Mail for the missing emails and insisted they bear zero liability because they posted them on time, completely disregarding UK consumer law whereby the retailer is responsible for the item until the consumer receives it. To make matters worse, the label on the box showed the actual postage cost was only around £6, despite them charging a £14.50 delivery fee.
While they offered and agreed to refund the delivery fee, which I appreciate, the customer service was deeply unpleasant and filled with excuses. The flowers themselves were fine, despite some wilting and discoloration, but I would not recommend a business that charges premium delivery rates, fails to update customers on their orders, and refuses to take accountability when things go wrong.
